NHS blueprint revealed in June
5:01pm Tuesday 5th March 2013 in Latest News
Proposals on how care for minor injuries will be provided in Devizes in the future will be revealed in June.
The Wiltshire Clinical Commissioning Group is reviewing minor injury care provision across the county. The GP-led organisation takes over the responsibility for planning and buying health services from NHS Wiltshire in April.
Last November, a 2,562-signature petition calling for the reinstatement of a minor injury unit in Devizes was presented to NHS Wiltshire by Horton residents William and Elizabeth Allen and Jo Batchelor of Devizes Books.
People needing treatment have to travel to Chippenham or Trowbridge Hospitals’ minor injury units. The unit in Devizes closed in 2007.
An update was given on the situation at a board meeting of NHS Wiltshire on February 27.
Debbie Fielding, accountable officer of the CCG, said: “We are going to consider the petition as part of our community transformation process, which is going on at the moment. This work is predominantly focussing on the elderly.
“We recognise Devizes has problems relating to its rurality. We are looking at the health needs of the people in Devizes and we will be bringing a response on the work in June to our governing body in public.”
NHS Wiltshire non-executive director Lis Woods was disappointed that the report presented by Ms Fielding did not contain any information on how minor injury services had coped since the unit in Devizes closed.
Mrs Woods said: “Clearly there hasn’t been blood in the streets, but it would have been nice to have been assured. The paper (report) is so short and doesn’t tell us where we are going.”
NHS Wiltshire chairman Tony Barron said the board had received reports in the past on the use of other units following the closure of minor injury units.
The CCG has ruled out a standalone minor injury unit in Devizes but said it was developing plans for community-based care. These include GPs from the town’s three practices working collaboratively to provide minor injuries services in local settings.
